UFC 318 is set to go down next month from the Smoothie King Center in Louisiana. Headlining the card will be the hometown hero, Dustin Poirier, in his retirement fight as he meets fan favourite, Max Holloway, in a trilogy bout. As an added caveat, the BMF title is on the line.
During the UFC 317 broadcast, the UFC 318 main card was announced, and to fans’ shock, it is extremely weak. It features just five ranked fighters, some relatively unknown names and a fighter who has a history of pulling out of fights.
We look at the card in detail and debate who maybe should be pushed up the UFC 318 card.
UFC 318 Main Card
Main Event – Max Holloway vs Dustin Poirier
Well worthy of headlining any PPV, Holloway vs Poirier 3 rightly sits atop the card. The stories heading into this one make it a fascinating match-up, especially as it is Poirier’s retirement fight.
The Last Dance pic.twitter.com/NnGXh5yp66
— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) April 25, 2025
There is a suggestion that this fight has used up the majority of the UFC’s budget for UFC 318, because without it, the main card is UFC Apex worthy.
Co-Main Event – Dan Ige vs Patricio Pitbull
The co-main event is not a bad fight by any means. Dan Ige is ranked #14 at featherweight and is one of the more entertaining, exciting fighters at 145lbs. He’s coming off a big win against Sean Woodson last time out and will be looking to continue that form into UFC 318.
Patricio Pitbull, on the other hand, isn’t in great form. He’s 1-3 in his last four fights and in his UFC debut, really disappointed fans with a performance that had fans questioning just how good he actually is. Granted, he faced Yair Rodriguez, one of the best guys in the division; however, after years of hype around his debut, he failed to deliver. Let’s hope that at UFC 318, he can turn up and entertain the fans.
Ateba Gautier vs Robert Valentin
And this is where the main card starts to get a little dicey. Remember, this is a PPV card in which UFC fans have to pay their hard-earned cash to watch it.
23-year-old Ateba Gautier is exciting. He’s just 1-0 in the UFC, and that came via knockout. Six of his seven wins have come via knockout, with all but one coming in the first round. He’s must-watch, however, he isn’t a household name. He takes on 10-5 Robert Valentin. At 0-2 in the UFC, you may remember that Valentin is the man who was in one of the worst UFC fights in history, where he was controlled for 13:16 of a 15-minute fight, taken down eight times and bored fans to sleep.
Remember, this is a PPV…
Paulo Costa vs Roman Kopylov
This one has potential at middleweight. Paulo Costa is a former title challenger, multiple-time Fight Night headliner and has devastating power. With that being said, he’s 1-4 in his last five and hasn’t finished a fight since 2018. Since that 2018 outing (which itself was re-booked), he’s had six cancelled or re-booked fights… not a great look. He’s somehow held on to a #13 ranking, despite not beating anyone since 2022…
Kopylov has a lot of potential, but, at 34, if he is to make a real run in the UFC, he has to do it now. He’s 2-1 in his last three and is coming off a finish victory over Chris Curtis last time out. His well-rounded style could cause Costa problems, however, it isn’t one that fans will be particularly looking forward to.
Michael Johnson vs Daniel Zellhuber
39 year old veteran, Michael Johnson, will look to continue his decent form at UFC 318 as he clashes with Daniel Zellhuber. None of these men are ranked and it appears like Johnson is acting as a stepping stone to measure where Zellhuber is at this point in his career. That isn’t to say that Johnson won’t bring his A game, however.
Neither man is a finishing machine, and their placement to open up the main card of the UFC 318 PPV isn’t logical at all. Especially considering fan favourite Kevin Holland is on the prelims against the always game, Daniel Rodriguez.
So… who else?
Elsewhere on the card is a fight between ranked middleweights, Marvin Vettori and Brendan Allen, a much-deserved fight to feature on the main card.
Fan favourite Gunnar Nelson features against fellow veteran, Neil Magny. A fight which features two men very familiar to the wider UFC audience.
We have a guaranteed violent fight as Ikram Aliskerov takes on Brunno Ferreira. Between them they have 33 professional fights, of which just four have seen the judges. Ferreira hasn’t gone the distance in his entire career and Aliskerov hasn’t seen the judges in his UFC career. A very logical fight to open the UFC 318 main card.
Kyler Phillips and Vinicius Oliveira also feature on the prelims. Two ranked bantamweights with exciting styles deserve a place on the main card, however, Dana White and the powers that be, disagree.
